The newly restored Newtown Common at the foot of West Greene Street will officially open to the public during a public celebration on Sunday, October 14.

 

A ceremony is scheduled to begin at 1:15 p.m. inside the Newtown Theatre, 120 North State Street. Light refreshments will be provided. The ceremony will be followed by the official grand opening of the park at 2 p.m.

 

The Newtown Common and Creek Restoration Project was completed by Flyway Excavating, which was awarded a contract by the borough earlier this year to revitalize and restore the small patch of history, which once included more than 40 acres of open space along the east and west side of the Newtown Creek in the heart of town.

 

The Common, when it was laid out in the late 1600s by William Penn, was designed as a focal point of the town and was used as a pasture for livestock and for other common purposes - public speaking, business and recreation.

 

Unfortunately the Common was left unattended over the years and became overgrown, which resulted in the sale of all but one of the common lots to fund the construction of the Centre Avenue Bridge and other projects in the late 1700s. The last remaining lot is located at the foot of West Greene Street on both sides of the creek and is marked by a stone memorial.

 

Borough councilwoman Julia Woldorf, working in partnership with the Newtown Creek Coalition and the Borough (which owns the land), secured state and county funding to restore the lot and bring attention to the historic piece of land.